The hosts, whose team features several of the squad that won Olympic bronze at Tokyo 2020, squeezed into the semi-finals with a 1-0 victory at the Kalinga Stadium.

Sharda Nand Tiwari scored what proved to be the only goal of the game after 21 minutes when he flicked home a penalty corner.

Belgium dominated possession and created several chances after falling behind but India's resolute defence held firm to seal their progression to the next round.

India will face Germany, who beat Spain in a shootout after their quarter-final finished 2-2, for a place in the final.

"With the plan we had, we tried to execute that but still a few things couldn’t happen," said India’s Vishnukant Singh.

"It was a really tough match. 

"We cannot underestimate our opponents. 

"Our plan was to win and it is important that we enjoy that."

The other semi-final will be between Argentina and France.

Argentina booked their place in the last four in dramatic fashion as Franco Agostini's deflected cross in the dying stages saw them beat The Netherlands 2-1.

Joaquin Kruger had given Argentina the lead before Miles Bukkens equalised for the Dutch, who had been considered among the favourites for the title.

France enjoyed a serene passage to the semi-finals, sweeping aside Malaysia 4-0 thanks largely to Timothée Clément's hat-trick of penalty corners.

The semi-finals are scheduled to be held on Friday (December 3).